The hygiene hypothesis proposes that a 20th century surge in allergies and asthma is because people are living in increasingly hygienic environments. Rather than the rural farm life of the agricultural 19th century, families live in urban and suburban communities, have fewer children who can exchange infections, bathe and wash their hands more frequently, and use antibiotics excessively. This all means reduced infant exposure to microbes that would have tempered excessive immune reactions, such as asthma, later in life.Read more ...

Faculty and staff from the School of Medicine gathered Tuesday afternoon to celebrate the promotion of 22 women faculty, 10 of whom had earned the title of full professor and 12 who attained the rank of associate professor...

Shannon Kahan, a posdoc in in Dr. Allan Zajac’s lab and recent recipient of the state’s only American Cancer Society postdoctoral fellowship, knocked it out of the park during the Office of Postdoctoral Education and Postdoctoral Association celebration...Read more ...

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Jennifer RowlandJennifer Rowland, graduate student in the Department of Microbiology, and Nicholas Eustace, first year MD/PHD program student, were selected for the prestigious K-RITH summer internship program. Jennifer, a student in the lab of Michael Niederweis, Ph.D., and Nicholas will work with Adrie Steyn, Ph.D., a UAB Microbiology faculty member who splits his time between K-RITH and UAB.

The global health initiative K-RITH (KwaZulu-Natal Research Institute for Tuberculosis and HIV) is an innovative collaboration between the Howard Hughes Medical Institute (HHMI) and the University of KwaZulu-Natal (UKZN), with public sector support through LifeLabs, the biotechnology investment arm of the South African government.

Nicholas EustaceStrategically based in a region with a high volume of TB and HIV cases, K-RITH’s state-of-the-art laboratories enables scientists to address the crises of TB and HIV at the heart of the epidemic. The international program draws young scientists with a variety of expertise. Additionally, K-RITH is increasing regional science education opportunities and strengthening the research capabilities of scientists throughout Africa.

Jennifer and Nicholas will spend 8 to 12 weeks at K-RITH in Durban, South Africa, this coming summer. They, along with other students chosen from programs at Johns Hopkins University and Harvard, will have an opportunity to participate in HIV and TB-related research in the new state-of-the-art research facility at K-RITH. The K-RITH internship, awarded to Jennifer and Nicholas, is sponsored by the UAB Global Health and Vaccines Initiative, which received funds from the Dean of the School of Medicine at UAB for this important outreach. UAB is excited to partner with K-RITH in this exchange program and is looking forward to additional opportunities to foster cross-institutional collaborations.